A cluster of large scrub fires stretching for kilometres south of Oamaru saw firefighters scramble yesterday afternoon.
At 8.45pm, Otago Rural Fire Authority rural fire officer Eric Spittal said about 98% of the fires had been extinguished, as crews from Glenavy to Palmerston had worked tirelessly since 2.30pm.
"It's been a hard battle, but we've had fire crews from as far north as Glenavy, right down south to Palmerston responding,'' Mr Spittal said.
"We're trying to get the crews fed one by one and we're on top of it.''
The fires had threatened numerous properties, barley crops and wheat crops and spread to the roadside at Maheno, but overall it had been a "good save'', he said.
Police helped close a section of State Highway 1 near the fires for a short period, with a diversion in place.
The railway line would be monitored by a railway crew overnight.
"So we can go away with the knowledge that they will be patrolling up and down,'' Mr Spittal said.
"The last thing we'd want would be a wheat crop or barley crop taking off - that would be terrible.''
The cause of the fires was still under investigation, but Mr Spittal could confirm that it been sparked by a vintage steam train on an excursion from Dunedin.
"Something from the steam train has ignited the grass for many, many kilometres,'' he said.
It is understood the train, carrying about 400 passengers, was forced to stop in the Waianakarua area, near the Mill House.
It was a "miracle'' that the Herbert Forest was not threatened by fire, Mr Spittal said.
"One of the biggest things we were worried about was major plantations and major grass fires and Herbert Forest was our big, big concern at the start,'' he said.
Mr Spittal said a command centre had been "quite mobile'' because of the size of the fire and the large area to cover - the fires stretched from the Whitestone Roading depot at Deborah, to south of Maheno.
"We were quite mobile today. Quite often we stay in the same spot, but today we were all over the place,'' he said.
"The biggest problem was trying to get access through the farmland to the tracks.''
In such dry conditions any fire was difficult to contain, but being able to respond early had made a difference.
"Hats off to all of the brigade, all of the volunteers, they've done a tremendous job and as I look out the window of my vehicle now I can see that the choppers are still very busy,'' Mr Spittal said.
